


Hey Detective

by Leon_Darick



Category: Batman - All Media Types, Red Hood and the Outlaws (Comics), Red Robin (Comics)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-02
Updated: 2021-03-01
Packaged: 2021-03-13 06:34:56
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,608
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29149041
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Leon_Darick/pseuds/Leon_Darick
Summary: Instead of becoming Robin, Tim Drake went to college to become a dective. He first meets Jason when he comes in to give a report on a recent bank robbing carried out by the Riddler. Tim is immediately curious at Jason's lack of response to being held at gunpoint, or lack of response to half the tests done on him by medical professionals.They end up running into each other multiple times afterwards, finally Tim stops him to ask to meet at a coffee shop, his curiosity getting the best of him as he looks at the tall man with bandage covering his cheek.
Relationships: Tim Drake/Jason Todd
Comments: 5
Kudos: 66





	1. The Report

Tim sat, watching CCTV from the Bank. The Riddler hadn't shown up in person, but his minions seemed to be carrying out this robbery with great care. He sighed, looking for the moment when the kid who got up to hold off the robbers for the police to get in. Tim rubbed his eyes, exhausted. He looked back up, studying the moment when the kid got up. 

'A streak of white hair, huh? Wonder where he got that done.' Tim thought, watching the que that gave the kid the sign to get up. He watched, curious. This kid knew what he was doing. 

"Hey Tim, got that kid in from the hospital." One of his coworkers said. He looked over, getting a closer look at this kid. "Says his name is Jason, according to the doctors he doesn't have much damage. He got a cold gaze, that one. Wouldn't say a word until he got out of the hospital." Tim nodded, studying the male. The thing that caught his eye was the bandage over his cheek bone, and his striking eyes. 

"I'll sit in on the interview." Tim said, motioning Jason over. He watched Jason walk over, as his partner pulled out a notebook and pen. 

"Alright Jason, let's get this started. Have a seat. I'm Detective Muller." He introduced himself as Jason sat down. 

"I'm Detective Drake, I'll be sitting in on the interview." Tim said, offering his hand out to shake. He watched Jason hesitantly reach out, his grip sturdy. The look in Jason's eyes told Tim that something was wrong, but maybe not physically. 

"You seem to already know me." Jason said, pulling his hand away. Tim nodded, he was curious. Jason didn't seem interested in whether or not he was alive, it was like something was driving him to keep moving even if he didn't want too. 

"Can you tell me what drove you to get up like that?" Muller asked. 

"That man. He wasn't focused, he was off balanced. He didn't want to fire that gun. He was too focused on the police outside, and he was the main one in the way of the best way for the police to enter the bank." Jason said, his glare hardening. 

"So you disarmed him, how did you know that none of the other goons were going to see you?"

"I was there for 5 hours, I heard them talking about routines. They couldn't switch out the guy in front without giving out that they were running rounds. I learned it well enough to figure out the right time to catch them off guard." Jason said, eyes shifting from Muller to Tim, and back again. 

"Keen eye, eh? How did they enter the building?" Muller pressed on, noticing Jason's body language was tense.  
"The floor. They came up through multiple spots out of the floor." Jason said, eyes wandering about the police station. He looked anywhere but at the two men in front of them. 

"Is today a bad time? Do you have information you can give us to reach out to pull you at a later date?" Tim said, noticing Jason's body language and the panic starting to form in his eyes. Jason nodded and Tim pulled out a pen and paper for him. Jason quickly scribbed down the needed information, going to get up Tim stopped him. "I'll walk you out."

"Thanks.." Jason said, eyes unfocused and conflicted. Tim nodded, and put his hand on Jason's shoulder before leading him out.  
\------  
Hours after, Jason sat in his 'home' of that week. He was staring at the wall, mind flowing out of control. He flinched once he heard the sound of thunder, ironically pulling him out of his trance. He stood up, dropping the gun in his hand as fumbled his way to the bathroom of the abdonded apartment he was at. He ripped the bandage off his face, glaring at the scar in the shape of a 'J' on his face. He screamed, punching his mirror, his fist bleeding as he gently pulled his hand away from the mirror. He fell to the ground, cursing that damned clown as he did. While he had made amends with Bruce, he still didn't want Bruce keeping constant eyes on him. Instead he gave him contacts that people could get too, like a phone and other devices. 

He tried to remember what he'd given to those officers to contact him, he vaguely remembers scribbling down his email, but he swore he could remember writing his number down too? He shook his head, he'd know when they reached out. He took a few moments to calm down, before picking his phone up and dialing the number Bruce had given him, breathing deeply as he placed the phone against his ear and listened to the phone ring. 

Ring.. Ring.. Ring.. Rin-

"Hello?" A groggy voice asked through the phone. "Who is this?"

"D-Dick?" Jason's voice shook. He didn't expect Dick to answer him. He heard Dick shuffle like he sat up, and when he replied he was more awake. 

"Jason? Holy hell, it's late! Did something happen?"

"I.. I need a place to stay and medication equipment and I'll be damned if I let the damn bat pay for more of my shit then he already is."

"Alright.. Alright. Send me an address and I'll be there soon. I think I got a place in Gotham to keep you in, but I won't be there until after noon tomorrow."

"That's fine.. Say, do you know a Drake at the police department?"

"The new kid? I think I met him once before my vacation. Why?"

"Met him today.. Kid has a good eye. Was there for that Bank Robery. You'll probably hear about how I 'nearly got myself killed' once you get back to work." 

"I heard something about it. Jay, listen I have to go. I'll set you a date with Drake later."

"I don't want to date anyone-"

"Blah blah, anyways, I'll call the station and ask them to wait for me to get back before continuing your interview tomorrow. Goodnight Jason."

"Goodnight Dick." Jason sneered, relaxing. Sure, he didn't quite get along with Dick, but Jason would rather talk to Dick then call anyone at the Wayne manner. He wrapped his hand in a spare shirt and went out to where his gear was, laying down and falling asleep.


	2. Grayson

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tim finally gets to sit and talk to Dick, learning more about Jason and his living situation. Although he picks up on something going on behind the scenes that Dick has disguised as stress, peaking his ever growing curiosity even more. They decide the best course of action is to sit in a familiar, more comfortable place for the interview with Jason. Tim can't seem to keep Jason's situation out of his head.

Tim remembered the phone call from Detective Dick Grayson a few days earlier, he had only seen him once or twice before Grayson left on vacation. The phone call stated 'The kid, Jason, I know him personally, I'm not going to pardon him for anything illegal he could have done, but I need to be there when you pull him back in for the interview. Mostly for his own safety, he has some serious mental stress going on right now. The stress of unknown detectives was too much after a hospital visit and hours inside a hostage situation, as I'm assuming the new detective picked up on. Thank you for acting so quickly, it's not easy to read his body language. I'll be back in town tomorrow, and back at work in 3 days.' Tim sighed, his curiosity annoyed him sometimes. That's part of why he became a detective, because his curiosity gave him a keen eye and a will to look for details where nobody thinks to look. A good way to use his 'gift' he guesses.

He got pulled out of his thoughts by Dick Grayson himself, sitting down across from him in the break room. "Hey kid, how's work treating you?"

"It's been good." Tim said, taking in the features of the man before him. He could remember a family called 'The Flying Graysons' but he was not going to ask, he knew what happened to the kids parents. Plus the fact that he had heard Grayson knew Bruce Wayne, who had adopted the kid after the accident, was all he needed. "You seen what Jason did yet? He's the reason the police were able to enter without losing any hostages."

"Really? Jason's smart, he can be patience when he wants to be." Grayson said, smiling. Dick took a sip of his coffee, before continuing to speak, "Jason doesn't give out compliments easy, y'know."

"Huh?" Tim was confused, Jason had complimented someone?

"The night before I came back into the town, he called me. Told me you have a good eye, which is his equivalent of a compliment to someone he doesn't know." Grayson smiled, Tim could see some resemble in the features of Jason and Dick, they look like you could put them in the same family and confuse them for blood brothers, but Tim knows better then to assume. 

"When should we bring him back in?"

"Probably in the next few days." Grayson said after a long sip of coffee. He seemed unsure about the answer himself, which was not a good sign to Tim. This 'stress' Jason was under seemed to be a lot worse than Grayson was letting on. 

"We could do it in a setting he is more comfortable in? Take the interview to him." Tim suggested at Dick's discomfort. 

"Not a bad idea, honestly. He just moved into a small house I rent out to people, granted rent free." Tim watched Grayson write down the address. "I'll talk to Jason about it." Tim looked over the address.

"Rent free? Isn't that bad on you financially?" 

"Not really, I get paid decently for this job and Bruce covers the bills on that rent house." Tim just nodded, it made sense. He was doing it to give people a home, not for the extra money. The rent fee was so the people could feel like they were helping Grayson in return for him helping them. 

"Does Jason not have another place to stay?" Tim asked, after a few minutes of silence.

"I don't think he does. He could get the money for a place if he was in a better mental spot, or he could ask Bruce to buy him a place, but those two aren't on the best of terms. To my knowledge he had his own place, but it seems more like he was bouncing from place to place, whether or not it was with someone or an abandoned building." Dick said, quietly, "I picked him up from the abandoned apartment building on the south side of town, the one Bane messed up." Tim was shocked, Jason kept up so well that even Tim could have sworn he was in a consistent living place. He sat for a minute, before nodding. He had no words, it was a pretty big shock. How had Jason kept up so well, and what was he doing at the bank in the first place? 

"We should keep that out of the report, they might get suspicious of his reasons to be at the bank."

"He has a traceable bank account, and it is kept alive decently by his turn in of money he gets for doing things for Bruce and paychecks he gets from Alfred for helping take care of stuff at the manor. He doesn't have a consistent listed job, but he has an income source." Tim watched the man in front of him explain, it was interesting. Jason's whole character was interesting. 

Oh had he wished he held his tongue in the next few moments, as the look that came from Dick's face at the question Tim had asked left him with a cold feeling inside.

"What's under the bandage on his face?" Tim had asked, and the pain in Dick's features was not mistakable. An apology quickly stumbled out of his mouth. "I-I'm sorry I didn't mean to ask it just slipped out-"

"It's okay, just.. Just don't ask Jason that question." Dick said, putting a smile on that didn't quite reach his eyes. Tim nodded, he didn't press. It wasn't his business. He watched Grayson finish his coffee. "I'm going to call Jason, you should probably get back to work too." He said, getting up. Tim again only nodded, getting up. He quickly went to his desk, sitting down and focusing on his work. He was trying to bust a drug op carried out by the Riddler, whom seemed to be all of his cases recently. He didn't start out at GCPD but he grew up here, so it was nice to be home again. He looked at the past few locations for these drug ops, trying to determine where the next one would be.

He sighed, wondering just what he was getting into. These past few run-ins they hadn't gotten any of the drugs, the ones the goons didn't escape with were blown up. This had put more than one cop in the hospital. Tim looked again, seeing a small pattern, he called Muller over to look, quickly finding the next spot, the time most likely two days away. He'd have to do that interview after. Tim sighed, writing down the location and time that it would most likely take place, before handing it off to other detectives to look over and confirm.

Once he saw Dick looking over it, he watched carefully. Tim just could not get Jason and his situation out of his head. He wanted to ask Dick more about Jason, but that wouldn't be exactly appropriate. The area that Jason was staying in though was an area Tim hung around a lot, decent coffee shops and it was a nicer part of town, near a park that Tim goes to every other week. While Tim didn't live exactly in the area, he lived close enough and generally had to go through it to get to work or to get home from work. He had a small feeling he would be seeing Jason every so often in that part of town. He sighed, wanting to just get work done and over with, his head hurt and he was tired of constantly thinking. He had to look into the case at hand and with this headache he was having trouble, not to mention his mind just would not focus. 

"You looked stressed." Muller commented, eyeing Tim as he rubbed his temples.

"God a bleeding headache." Tim said, looking back at his work. He saw no other location or time that would fit the pattern, and looking around, it seemed everyone agreed with him.

"You got a good eye Tim." One of his coworkers said, walking by. He smiled at the coworker, before getting some officers and detectives together to figure out the strategy to get into the drug op without failing like they had the last few times. He just hoped Batman or Nightwing would show up, because that would make the whole thing safer. Though he felt bad for doubting his coworkers, he knew that knew that with one of those two there things would go so much smoother. The one 'hero' he hadn't really heard about was the Red Hood, he wasn't even sure if he was real. Some detectives were going half crazy over trying to even track the guy, so he guessed this Red Hood was real. He'd have to look into it, but now wasn't the time.


	3. The Raid; Red Hood; Hospital

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two days later, at the Drug Op Raid, Tim runs into a small bit of trouble. With the Riddler striking the Drug Op,and the Joker suddenly showing up in downtown, the police department is spread too thin. He was still hoping for help from one of the masked vigilantes, but it isn't who he was hoping for, and based on the anger from the masked man, it seems like you shouldn't call him in on his night off. While in the hospital, an unexpected visitor comes by to leave what was left of his interview written down for him, along with a coupon for some free pizza.

Tim sat, listening to gun shots around him. His head hurt as he tried to wrap his mind around how they'd missed the Joker's rampage through downtown, which had started once the Drug Op had started, clearly working in together to thin out the police force. Tim peaked out over his cover, looking to see how many men were in the old warehouse. They all had Aks, but he couldn't get a good enough look at them to tell which specific kind. He looked over at Muller, making sure he was okay. He then went back and shot some rounds, not emptying his clip, but trying to knock some of the guys off guard. Tim wondered if he could go around and get the head goon, but he didn't see a good opening. 

"Shit.. God damn it!" Muller cursed, as Tim looked over and helped him down, "Fuck! Hope this doesn't destroy my shoulder.." Muller muttered.

"It'll be okay," Tim paused, pulling his jacket off and giving it to Muller to use to blot his wound, "Just keep pressure on it, and don't fall asleep." Tim said, helping Muller before moving back. He spotted a cop and yelled out, "We need medical!" To which the cop nodded and leaned into his radio, but Tim couldn't hear him. He sucked in a deep breath and started shooting again, careful not to get hit. With his smaller size, this was an easier task. He got back under cover, but suddenly he felt like he was in a ton of pain.

'Everything is white, why is everything white?' Tim asked, he couldn't hear anything. There was a sharp ringing in his ears. 'It all hurts, my head hurts.' Tim thought, moving his hand around he felt something warm touch him, 'Blood. Muller!' Tim shook his head, forcing his vision to start coming through. He looked around, his head spinning, and he quickly spotted Muller, he was impaled, this blood was his. It was a grenade. Tim scurried over, glad to see the impalement was closer to his stomach, and that Muller was still breathing. His hearing started coming through, the gunshots were slowed. 

"All right boys, play times over." Tim heard, as the first semi clear thing he could. He looked up, not recognizing the voice. His eyes widened, it wasn't who he was hoping for.

'No no no no no.' Tim thought, 'Why the Red Hood? Is the Joker that bad...?' Tim thought, trying to get up.

"Ah! The Hood! Of course Batman sends you to clean up this mess while he takes care of the Joker! You're just not making the cut, huh?" The head goon laughed. He quickly fell silent at the Red Hood's own laughter.

"Not cutting it?" He paused. "Oh, he sent me here for a reason. He knew that if he didn't the Joker would be dead. One shot, that's all it takes. But no, I'll make that clown's death slow and painful, slow. That scar on your face, can hardly see it, some extensive plastic surgery and you'll be fine." Hood said, seething. "You guys seem to be unlucky, tonight was supposed to be my night off." This was all Tim could remember before blacking out.

\----

"Hey. Detective Drake, wake up." Tim groaned, hissing in pain as someone poked his side. He opened his eyes, his vision blurry, but he could still make out the red helmet and glowing eyes of the Red Hood. "Drake."

He groaned again, "Muller.. Where is Muller?"

"Over there. Skewered but alive." Hood said, and Tim noticed he was being poked by a gun, but Hood's finger was off the trigger. 

"Thank God.." Tim muttered.

"I kept some of these guys alive, they're knocked out, but I stole your handcuffs and looted some of the dead cops for 'em." Hood said, pausing for a moment. "You really are an idiot, couldn't wait for a hero?" He sounded like he was mocking him. But he spoke again before Tim could reply. "Too bad, the 'heros' are dealing with the Joker, so you got me. You're still a lucky bastard, from the looks of it you were just feet away from being killed by that grenade." Hood said, poking his side again to make sure he stayed awake. 

"I guess.. Are the drugs in tact?" Tim said, trying to sit up, only for the Hood to force him to stay down.

"Stop moving, you'll make your wound bleed. Yeah, though there might be more gunfire trying to save them, so we have to move you before then." Tim nodded, looking around. "I'll make sure they pay for this shit, Drake. Don't worry. They won't target your friend, he looks like he's dead but he's playing, like I told him too." 

"Thanks.. Can you set me up behind that pillar?" Tim asked, pointing, to which the Hood just replied by picking him up and moving him carefully. "How are things in downtown?"

"Standstill, Bats is trying to figure out where the Joker is before he starts blowing downtown up. Nightwing is on recovery duty to my knowledge. Both are stuck out there." 

"Damn.." Tim said, as Hood nodded and stood up, waiting. It was about 15 to 20 minutes before anyone else showed up. Tim watched the Hood move and disarm a few more men, he recognized the technique, but couldn't remember from where. He kept hidden though.

Jason grumbled as the men kept coming at him. "Alright boys, play times over. I think I had enough of your shit." He said, going for head shots and tossing one of his grenades. 

"You got a death wish!?" 

"Says the one yelling with no Kevlar." He snarkly said back, giving the guy no time to reply as he shoots him in the head. "You guys think this is impressive? You should see what I can get done in a whole night." He smirked, jumping up and over some guys before shooting them in the head.He then shot the goons holding the drugs, turning his attention to the rest of them. "Fucking calling me in on my night off, I'm making it all of your guys' problem." He sneered as he shot a grenade out of the air. He walked forward slowly, but not cocky. He knew what he was doing, but he also had to keep track of Tim and Muller. 

Tim watched the Red Hood clear out the remaining goons in under 10 minutes, just as medical finally arrived on scene. He stood up slowly and carefully, doing his best to keep from bleeding. He watched the Hood walk over to him, and silently let Tim use him as a brace to walk. There would be no more goons, not with the bloodshed of the Red Hood watching over the drugs. As he lead him out, he saw Nightwing and backup officers. 

"Hey! Is anyone else back there?" Nightwing asked. 

"Injured cops, and some goons that are alive. If they are handcuffed, they should be at least. One of the Detectives, Muller, is impaled near his stomach and needs careful extraction. The drugs are safe and can be taken into the station." Hood said, as medical took Tim from him. Tim watched the two converse, as medical tried to look him over. He suddenly pointed at his side and was loaded into the ambulance, but not before seeing the salute goodbye from the Red Hood. Then, he let himself drift to sleep as the paramedics cut his shirt open to make sure there was no bleeding.

\----

Tim came too again after surgery, he was hungry and in a bit of pain. His ears were still ringing a bit as he listened to the sound of the heart monitor and the nurse checking in on him. He stared at the ceiling, before looking at the clock on the wall. It was 4 in the morning. He sighed and tried to relax. 

"Would you like me to turn on the TV?" The nurse asked him, and he just nodded. It turned on, playing Looney Tunes. "Is this okay?" Again, he nodded. He figured it would be good enough after a stakeout like that. "Your friend, Mason Muller, was pulled out of surgery about an hour ago. He is still under, but he's stable and okay." This caught Tim's attention.

"When will he wake up?" Tim asked, quietly.

"Most likely in a few weeks. It's best to stay to keep him in the coma so he doesn't stress or have to be in pain." Tim nodded, it made sense. 

"Thank you." He said, leaning back. "It's cold. Can you turn the heat up?" 

"Of course. I'm going to go check on other patients now though." She smiled at Tim, turning up the heat a bit and leaving the room. He got comfortable, waiting for the heat to kick in. He sighed, closing his eyes and letting sleep overtake him again.

When Tim woke up again, it was only about 30 minutes later. He sighed, his throat was dry and there was no water. He leaned over and pressed the call nurse button after a few minutes of failing to go back to sleep. 

"What's wrong? Need pain killers?" The nurse asked, poking her head in.

"Water, actually." Tim said, quietly. His throat hurt, a lot. The nurse nodded, and left for a moment before returning with some water for him. She helped him drink to avoid moving him as much as possible. He nodded, thankful. She refilled his cup and left it on the table for him before leaving the room again. He got comfy and let himself sleep.

\----

"Mr. Drake? You have a visitor." The nurse said, politely from the door. Once he was awake enough she moved his bed up a bit, letting him see his visitor, before she left. It was Jason. 

"Jason, what are you doing here?" Tim asked, reaching over for his water.

"You never finished interviewing me, so I wrote down what I figured you'd want to know." Jason said, he was holding an envelope. "And some free pizza coupons that don't expire for 3 months." Tim nodded, carefully setting his water down.

"Thanks, this should take some stress off things. And hey, who can say no to pizza?" Tim joked.

"Rich snobs, vegans." Jason said, in a snarky tone. 

"True, true." Tim laughed a little, holding his side in pain.

"What happened to you?"

"Something must have entered my side when the grenade went off, but Muller is in worse shape." Tim shrugged. Jason just ruffled his hair, before Tim's eyes caught his bandage again. He looked away though, not wanting to disturb Jason.

"I should probably get going, Dickie Bird will probably be here soon to check on you, so you won't miss me." Jason said, standing. He saluted Tim, which caught his eye, the Red Hood had done the same thing, albeit differently, the night before. He waved but it was still confusing, they both saluted Tim, but one as Tim was taken away, and the other as he left the room Tim was in. He shook his head, he must be overthinking things.

He must just be out of it from the pain meds.


	4. On Vacation, Want Some Coffee?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tim gets out of the hospital and is put on medical leave, but the office is joking that it's forced vacation. He watches the News to see what is going on in Gotham before leaving the house. He runs into Jason walking home from the store, and asks him to join him for some coffee. What follows is a slightly awkward encounter.

Tim woke up to his phone going 'brzzt' to a text message. He groggily leaned over and checked the time, 8:42 a.m. and he was still in bed- those pain killers really knocked him out. He checked who messaged him, it was Dick in a group chat. He rubbed his eyes and sat up, looking at the group chat that the office had made to ask him how he was while he in the hospital. 'Everyone is dying to know.... How are you enjoying your forced vacation?' is what the text said. Tim rolled his eyes and allowed himself to laugh. He quickly got to typing in reply.

'Just fine, it's called m e d i c a l l e a v e by the way :D' He laughed at himself and put his phone down. He got up and put a shirt on, deciding to stay in his pajamas for breakfast. He walked out into the living room, looking outside. It was slightly sunny, mostly cloudy but it was dry. Good day to go out. He'd see how the weather was in a few hours. He hummed, deciding to sit and watch T.V. for a bit. He didn't really want to cook, so if the weather stayed nice then he'd go out in about an hour, if not he'd make something or order something. He started channel surfing, pausing on the news to see what's been up with Gotham recently.

"Gotham City has been quiet since Red Hood busted into a police raid on a drug op carried out by the Riddler a few weeks ago, and the Joker has not been seen since his last encounter with Batman. Harley Quinn, on the other hand, was found beaten and thrown out of a 7 story window, living only thanks to the garbage pile she fell on. She is in a coma, but inside the building there were trace signs that the Joker has done this to her," A picture of the hospitalized Quinn showed on screen,"Furthermore, her condition suggests she might not be able to walk again, as the damage to her spine might be too severe." 

"That sounds like a lot she'll have to take in once she wakes up, but it might just keep her out of Arkham and get her the help she needs to be reintroduced to society." The male reporter said.

"Billionaire Bruce Wayne is covering her medical bills, as she is not in a position to pay for them nor do they want her stressing about that once she wakes up. Doctors don't want her trying to break out of the hospital to go rob a bank for money for medical bills, if she would even pay for them." The other reporter began again, "Onto our case about the drug op again however, Detective Muller is in stable condition, and one of the few officers still in the hospital. The detective carried out by the Red Hood, Tim Drake, is now at home on medical leave. If not for these detectives holding their ground, the drugs would have been lost before the help of the Red Hood had arrived, so we thank you for your service to Gotham." Tim cracked a small smile, finally a few officers made a difference in this crazy city. 

"Now the question is; are we any closer to discovering the identity behind the Red Hood? Or even Nightwing? What about Batman himself? These questions have been on our minds for ages, and we not even one step closer to figuring out who they are. Next, we interview someone the man who has been bringing up theories about it being an inside job in the Gotham City Poli-" Tim shut the T.V. off, rolling his eyes. The police wouldn't be trying so hard to catch the masked vigilantes if they knew who they were, even then the knowledge could put them at great risk. He stood up, stretching and going to his room to get out of his pajama pants and put some shoes on. This theorist could cause the GCPD some problems, put any named officers in danger. 

It took Tim a few minutes to actually get out the door, and when he did he sighed, it kind of wanted to go to that new cafe, it had good coffee and decent breakfast foods. Issue is, it's half way out to his work, and Tim isn't cleared to drive, as least not long distances. He decided to just take the bus. Easy, doesn't force him to go a long distance walking through the chilly air, it was nice but still cold. He wouldn't have to drive either. He hummed, walking to the bus stop he remembered taking on his first few days at the GCPD because his car hadn't arrived in Gotham. He hummed, walking to the bus stop. Hopefully it wouldn't take long for the bus to get there, he didn't want to be out in the cold for a long time.

\----

Tim took a deep breath as he stepped off the bus, now to walk the rest of the way. He started walking, humming softly to himself. He looked about, he never really got to be on this side of town growing up, so he was somewhat relaxed being there. It was the calmer side of town, not many places for crime lords to hit, but he could swear that one still owned the place. He wasn't paying full attention to where he was walking, and walked right into someone.

"Oh I'm sorry, I was looking where I was goin- Jason?" Tim paused, the man in front of him was indeed Jason, and the bag in his hand suggested he had just left the store.

"For a detective, you really aren't perceptive are you?" Jason remarked, raising an eyebrow. Despite the lack of smile, Tim could see humor in Jason's eyes.

"Oh hush." Tim said, rolling his eyes and smiling.

"Anyways, what are you doing out here? Aren't you still on medical leave from work, are you even supposed to be out of your house?"

"According to everyone at the department, it's called 'forced vacation'. But yeah, I can't drive yet so I took the bus. I'm going to the cafe down the road, want to join me?" Tim offered, hoping for some non work company. It took Jason a second to answer, as he tensed up at the question. When he relaxed, he just nodded. "What'd you get from the store?"

"Hm? Oh, something for dinner." He said, eyes forward as they both started walking. Tim felt a bit awkward but tried his best not to let it show. "I needed some side stuff for steak tonight." Jason spoke up again after a minute, Tim got caught in his awkward fidget. He looked over at Jason to see him side eyeing him, this would be interesting. Jason clearly wasn't one for small talk, at least he didn't seem in the mood for it. 

"Steak sounds amazing." Tim said, thinking aloud after a few minutes. "Oh shoot, I'm sorry I said that out loud-"

"It's alright, dork." Jason said, cracking a small smile and looking at him. As they got to the Cafe, it hit Tim just how tired Jason looked, like he hadn't slept. He opened the door and walked in however, leaving it open enough for Tim to follow suit. Not a gentleman, but not a total dick either. Just in between, because he made sure the door didn't close on Tim without outright holding it open for him. He watched Jason go and sit down, and followed suit, it was in a smaller booth, but a booth nonetheless. He sat down, across from Jason. 

"Howdy boys, I'm Sammy and I'll be your server today. What type of coffee can I get ya?"

"3 espresso shots in a mocha please." Tim said, "And a croissant." 

"Alright, how about you?"

"Dark roast with French Vanilla creamer and some scones." Jason told her, and she nodded, writing it down.

"Alright boys I'll be right out with your breakfast and coffee." She smiled, walking off. Tim sighed, neatly wrapping his fingers together on the table. "So, why did you invite me to coffee?" Jason asked, his blue eyes staring Tim down.

"Just came to mind in the moment type thing, I haven't had any form of company besides work mates since I got out of the hospital, and I like those guys but at the same time they're cops and detectives, so you have little privacy." Tim said, shrugging. Jason was studying his body language. Tim studied Jason's own body language, and his features. Jason just nodded in reply. They sat in silence until their coffee and breakfast got to the table.

"Here you are boys." Sammy said, giving them their respective food and drinks, before smiling and leaves after the boys thanked her.

"So, what do you do for a living Jason?" Tim said, picking up his mocha and taking a sip of his mocha. "Ah- it's hot." Tim said quickly after, setting his drink down.

"Of course it is, it's fresh." Jason said, picking up and eating a scone. He didn't react to the heat, but it wasn't just pulled out of the oven. "I do side jobs for people. Pet sitting, working on gardens, things like that." Tim nodded, nothing about Bruce. 

"Hey, easier than my job." Tim tried making a joke, only to get met with a raised brow. Tim smiled, awkwardly. It wasn't that Jason didn't have a sense of humor, it's that Tim wasn't making jokes that Jason found funny. 

"If your trying to be funny, it isn't working." Jason said, and about a minute later he spoke again, "Timbers, you can't use humor to get out of awkward situations, face it." He smirked.

"Okay okay fine! Umm.. How about this.. Who's your favourite hero?" Tim said, giggling a little.

"Really? Cheesy. Hmm.. If I have to pick one it'd probably be Wonder Woman," He paused, "How about you? And I swear if you say Batman I will leave and set your cat on fire."

"I don't have a cat, and it's not Batman. Hmm.. I'd say Superman, but if I'm being honest, the last Robin was pretty cool too." Tim said, smiling. Jason's brow raise then face of surprise made Tim laugh.

"Superman is somewhat expected from a detective, but the last Robin? Why not the first?" Jason asked, and Tim smiled knowing he wasn't the only one who thought there were 2, and that Nightwing was the og Robin.

"I grew up with him, I still have some old photos of him in action." Tim said, sheepishly, rubbing his thumbs together. Jason had a face of approval, which made Tim feel better. "You liked the second one more too?" Jason laughed a bit and nodded, taking a sip of his coffee. It got quiet again after that, but in a nice way. 

Tim smiled, maybe asking Jason to hang out wasn't such a bad idea after all. Maybe he'll get to learn more about the strange man in front of him, so he made sure that he left Jason with his number before they parted ways.


	5. Late Night Run-In

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> On a late night walk through the snow, Tim finds Jason and has to somehow guide him home without setting him off. Jason seems lost in his memories, memories Tim knows Jason has no want to share with anyone. With luck, he'll survive the trip, unlike the poor soul who tried to mug Tim, who probably wouldn't make it through the night. Oh well, least he's got hand warmers!

"Jason?" Tim called, noting the older man sitting in the snow who is hardly dressed for the weather. "Jason why are you out here?" Tim quickly pulled his hand warmers out, hoping to give the other male something to warm him up. He approached slowly, his concern clear as day on his face. It was almost 11:30 at night, why is Jason just sitting there? As he placed his hand on Jason's shoulder, he reacted violently, pulling Tim down and holding him still by his shoulders, using his knee to keep his legs still. His eyes were dark, his body was tense. "Jason it's me, it's Tim." Tim slowly reached his hand up, not surprised when his wrist was grabbed. "Jason, I'm only here to help. I want to get you out of the snow." Something in that sentence clicked in Jason's mind, Tim realized as he let go of Tim.

Tim slowly got up, holding out his hand, the hand warmer hidden in it. He smiled softly when Jason took his hand. He knew he still had to deal with whatever was going on, meaning he had to be careful. He gently started leading Jason towards the address Dick had given him, knowing the area at least a little bit. 

"Your hand is warm.." Jason whispered. Tim looked at him and smiled, deciding not to disclose the hand warmer. If it helped, he'd make sure it stayed that way. He continued guiding Jason. He suddenly stopped, Jason mumbling something and holding his face. "I.. I won't let him... I'll kill him for he did to me..." He mumbled, not noting the concerned look on Tim's face. He flinched as Tim reached out, gently rubbing his band-aid and saying words Jason couldn't quite hear, but it soothed him. He let Tim lead him forward again. 

Tim kept speaking softly to Jason, saying small things to try to keep Jason's attention on him instead of his memories. He hoped that he could get Jason home safely, but knowing Gotham, they would probably run into trouble.

It was about 10 minutes into their walk that they ran into trouble. Tim stood in front of Jason as he waited for the mugger to make a move. 

"Money. Wallet. Phone. Jewelry. Now."

"I don't have anything on me."

"What about your friend?" That was when Tim noted the gun, he was wondering when a weapon would come into play.

"He's got nothing either." The gun pointed straight in between Tim's eye, at this range he knew it would hit it's target no matter how he moved. He tightened his grip on Jason's hand. "It'll be okay Jason." He said softly to the larger male, before being ripped away from him and thrown to the floor. He felt a hand digging through his pockets, and he looked to Jason. Jason couldn't mistake the pain and fear in Tim's eyes, and he looked over to the male manhandling Tim. Jason's blood felt like it was on fire as his anger rose.

Tim watched what happened next in what felt like slow motion, Jason reaching out and picking the man up, kicking the gun out of his hand in the process. "Keep your hands off him." Jason growled. Tim continued to watch in fear as Jason sent his knee into the man's ribs, flinching at the sickening 'crack' that rung out. Tim quickly hid the gun in fear of it being in Jason's hands, noting how Jason wasn't looking at him. His attention is fully on the mugger.

Tim scooted back a bit as he just sat and watched Jason beat on the man, hearing the snap and crunch of bones, Jason's size allowing him to overpower the mugger. Tim was too scared to move as he watched the man started bleeding, cough up blood and have his leg torn to shreds. Tim forced himself into a happier place in his mind as he fought back his fear, he knew he wouldn't be able to go after Jason for this, he couldn't do anything, not even as a cop.

Tim didn't know how long it was until the man was beaten within an inch of his life, or when Jason had leaned down, lightly shaking Tim's shoulder.

"Tim. Timmy. Answer me." Jason called, Tim slowly looking up at him. The fear on his face was unmistakable, Jason knew he'd relapsed. It wasn't the mugger he was seeing, he was seeing the Joker. He gently rubbed Tim's face, blood on his bruised knuckles from hitting the wall once he'd realized what had happened. "Timmy I.. I'm sorry I got lost in my memories.." He was surprised when Tim latched onto him, 'He's warm..' Jason realized, and held him close.

"Let's get out of here." Tim muttered, wanting to get out of the cold and forget the events that had just happened. Jason nodded and picked Tim up, walking towards his home.

\-----

It was roughly 2:15 in the morning, and Tim was in Jason's clothes, wrapped in blankets and holding a bowl of soup. Jason made Tim shower and took his clothes to wash, and then made him soup. Now Tim was watching a movie, he was too tired to remember the name, while Jason showered. Tim ate his soup slowly, thankful for the warmth of it, but God was he tired. He just wanted to sleep. He gently set the half eaten bowl of soup down, looking at the T.V.

"Tim..?" He heard softly, and looked to see Jason, he still had his band-aid on his cheek, maybe it was a new one, but he could see the scars on Jason's body. He was in a pair of sweat pants, with no shirt and a towel wrapped around his neck. His hair was still wet from the shower he'd taken. "Are you feeling better?" He asked after a minute, stepping into the room. Tim just scooted further into his cocoon of blankets. He peeked out when Jason gently rubbed his head. "I'm sorry I.. I haven't exactly had the best day."

"I can see that, but don't worry, I won't do anything about that incident." Tim said, muffled by his blankets. He heard Jason laugh a bit, feeling him sit down.

"I hope you don't mind me making you stay here, it's just that it's late and I fucked up your night." Jason gently rubbed the cocoon. "I just.. For once during one of these times I want company.." Jason murmured, eyes unfocused.

"It's okay Jason." Tim reached out slowly, watching Jason grab his wrist on reflexes, before letting his hand go. "Why don't we go to bed? It might help if you let me stay with you in your room, y'know?" Tim couldn't quite explain what he was saying, but Jason seemed to get the hint as he picked up Tim's half eaten bowl of soup and took it into the kitchen. When he came back out Tim was getting out of his cocoon, but Jason just picked him up and carried him into his room.

"You'll be here when I wake up, right..?" Tim felt his heart ache at the soft tone of Jason's voice, he is in pain, he is scared, Jason is alone.

"Of course Jay. I'll be here as long as you need me." Tim smiled at him, as he was laid down. Jason didn't say anything, and just curled up against Tim, relaxing at the fingers gently running through his hair. Tim made sure to stay awake until Jason fell asleep, as long as it helped the larger male relax from his trauma.

Tim fell asleep that night with his fingers in Jason's hair, and a soft, loving smile on face.


End file.
